History Comes Alive at Barwon Park.
 

 
Well the dust has settled, the smoke has cleared, and Barwon Park mansion has returned to 2011. The event was a resounding success for all concerned; the public POV, the reenactors POV and officialdom POV. We all had a great time and raised some money for some very worthwhile causes.

Tributes have been pouring in alongside requests to hold the event each year and to expand upon it and really drive it further.

Most of you will be unaware of the true extents of the efforts that went in to creating this event. When you consider the logistics behind gathering nearly a hundred reenactors from four states, the legal hassles for transporting and storing the weapons and equipment, the preparation, the organising and running, the cleanup etc, it is truly mind boggling.

The GMRG and the MHSA-GB would like to thank everyone who attended the event and helped to make it the success that it was.

And in particular there are several herculean efforts that I would like to single out and mention.
 
 
Robin M and David K.

These guys initiated the event and drove it from behind the scenes. Without their work it would not have happened. They began working hard from at least six months prior to the event.

Robin was spending at least two days a week on preparations, and David wasn't far behind. Their efforts extended to a couple of weeks after the event during the cleanup, storage and retrieval of vehicles and equipment.

That the event ran so smooth was testament to their work and pre-planning.
  
 
 
John N, Jake N and Mike M.

Didn't you see much of these guys on the day?

That's because they spent most of the event out in the battlefield preparing the pyrotechnics for the battle scenarios. And whilst the rest of us were running around the battle, they were setting off the explosions and keeping an eye on safety.

Our pyros were described as "better than Beltring". Is there any better praise than that!
  
 
 
The Well Travelled.

The reenactors and crew behind the scenes came from all over the place. Mostly from Geelong and District, many from Melbourne, and still more from regional Victoria.

Special efforts worth mentioning:

  • Reenact SA who travelled all the way from SA and were a great group to work with.
  • Chris U who came all the way from Sydney with the Kubel and the Nebelwerfer.
  • The guys from Tassie who again supported us and are great to have around.
  • Tim S with the amount of vehicles and gear that he ships over vast distances.
  
 
 
The Doers.

These events don't just happen. It takes dedicated people who put in so much of their time and effort and expense to create the experience.

Special efforts worth mentioning:

  • Rod S who manufactures, maintains and keeps vehicles going.
  • Gino D and Dave F whose display was an astounding amount of work and transport.
  • Leo whose efforts kept the yanks full of K Rations.
  • Mike M who is there for every event building, filling, reloading, setup/cleanup, everything.
  
 
 
And there are many others behind the scenes, unknown and largely unthanked. We appreciate the efforts of everyone who put into this event, and would like to let you know that you can do it all over again for the next event!